University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa exceeds 20K students for the first time in over a decade

Fall enrollment at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa has surpassed 20,000 students for the first time since 2013.

Final enrollment numbers will not be official until early October, but as of Sept. 17, there are 20,012 students enrolled at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, a 4% increase over 2023.

The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is also welcoming a record high 3,123 first-time freshmen in fall 2024. This is the third straight year in which the university has reached 3,000 or more freshmen, after surpassing the mark for the first time in the university’s 117-year history in 2022.

The record number of first-time freshmen, as of Sept. 17, also included record highs in other categories:

• 1,849 of freshmen are Hawaiʻi residents, up from 1,581 in fall 2023 and 1,577 in fall 2022
• 489 identify as Native Hawaiian, up from 382 in fall 2023 and 395 in fall 2022 
• 406 identify as Filipino, up from 355 in fall 2023 and 353 in fall 2022

Enrollment at UH Mānoa has been steadily rising over the last five years with one exception in 2022 when there 24 fewer students than in 2021, when enrollment had spiked by 6% increase.

The 4% increase in 2024 occurred even though the federal government’s update to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, FAFSA, process was mired with issues according to the university. The FAFSA form last year was released months behind schedule and experienced multiple technical difficulties.

The University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa disbursed $81.6 million to more than 11,400 students this year compared to $74.6 million to more than 9,900 students in 2023.

The final enrollment numbers for the University of Hawai‘i’s 10 campuses will be announced in October. As of Sept. 17, headcount enrollment was up at eight of the ten University of Hawai‘i campuses, with a 2.8% increase across the entire University of Hawai‘i system. This follows fall 2023, when enrollment was up 1.8% systemwide.

The fall 2024 University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa student body profile is as follows:

• 62% (12,439) local students (5% increase from 2023)
• 31% (6,232) out-of-state US students (2% increase from 2023)
• 6% (1,245) international students (5% increase from 2023)